Israel strikes refugee camp in Rafah: Many countries outraged, Netanyahu admits mistake
The U.N. Security Council is scheduled to convene an emergency meeting Thursday (May 28) on an Israeli military airstrike that killed at least 45 people at a refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.
On May 27, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted that a military airstrike that killed dozens of people at a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip city of Rafah was a "tragic mistake," according to CNN.
"While we have made every effort not to harm those who were not involved, it is unfortunate that the tragic mistake made last night. We are investigating the incident," Netanyahu said
At least 45 people were killed and more than 200 injured after a fire broke out at a camp for displaced civilians in Rafah following an Israeli airstrike on the evening of May 26 (local time). The health ministry in the Gaza Strip said most of the victims were women and children.
Images obtained by CNN showed the refugee camp on fire and people fleeing in panic to seek refuge overnight. Fire-scorched bodies, including children, were pulled from the rubble by rescuers.
"There are still civilians trapped inside the refugee camp. The camp was attacked without warning. This place has been identified as a safe zone," said a Palestinian living in Rafah.
According to a U.S. official, Israel informed the Biden administration that it used precision munitions to strike targets in Rafah, but the explosion from the attack ignited a nearby fuel tank and caused a fire at the camp. The UN Security Council is scheduled to convene an emergency meeting today (May 28) on the strike.
According to Xinhua, many countries in the Middle East region strongly condemned the Israeli airstrike on the refugee camp in the city of Rafah. Anadolu news agency also reported that several Arab countries condemned the Israeli airstrike, calling it a "tragic" scene and calling on the U.N. Security Council to intervene to end Israel's military operation in Rafah and the Gaza Strip.
"Egypt condemns in the strongest terms the deliberate Israeli airstrike on the tents of displaced persons in the city of Rafah, which resulted in hundreds of casualties," the ministry said in a statement.
